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恐怕

Mandarin · pinyin kǒng pà

fear
to dread
I'm afraid that...
perhaps
maybe

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Characters in this entry

恐: kǒng · fear; fearful, apprehensive
怕: pà · to fear, be afraid of; apprehensive

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3–4 · kong3 pa4

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 2 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hung2 paa3

Cantonese word readings for 恐怕. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

verb

to worry; to feel anxious; to fear

adv

I'm afraid that; unfortunately; probably; regretfully; fearfully; perhaps; maybe

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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